What happened During a routine visit to a vessel in port, it was noticed that the Class A fire door for the laundry was intentionally wedged open with a wooden […]
Safety Flashes
IMCA safety flashes disseminate important information on incidents and potential hazards and the lessons learnt from them that can help prevent incidents occurring elsewhere in the industry.
Individual safety events are available individually online, tagged and searchable, while the traditional PDF collections are also available for download.
Submit a Report
All members are encouraged to contribute relevant safety-related information – please visit our Safety Flash Reporting page for details on the submission process.
IMCA Contact
Nicholas Hough
Consultant - Safety and Security
Contact
Safety Events
Failure of 64mm polyester rope in subsea mooring operations
What happened A 64mm polyester rope parted during the lowering of subsea equipment to depth. The failure occurred between the Mooring Line Deployment Winch (MLDW) and the pennant, due to […]
UK HSE: Employee in shipyard killed by falling steel post
The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has prosecuted a shipbuilding and repair company after an employee was fatally injured when struck by a 10m steel post. See press release […]
Watch your hands!! person injured while using an angle grinder
What happened A member of the crew was badly injured whilst cutting a piece of wood using an angle grinder fitted with a cutting blade. He was cutting dunnage for […]
Use of damaged electrical equipment by dock workers
What happened Third-party crew working on a vessel being demobilised were observed using damaged electrical equipment. Third-party welders were preparing to weld the anchor sea-fastening onto the main deck aft. […]
Dropped object: dislodged flex-joint laydown tool component
What happened? During removal of the anti-rotation/laydown tool from a Flex-Joint, a load-ring half plate, weighing 85kg, was inadvertently dislodged and dropped about 1.8m to deck. Crew on a J-Lay […]
MOB: person fell into water during gangway installation
What happened Deck crew were installing a portable gangway when a crew person fell into the water. The person was wearing full PPE and a life jacket and was recovered […]
Hand pinched between cable and cable roller frame
What happened A person got their hand trapped between the cable and an upright steel frame post of the roller table, leading to a hand injury. After completion of testing […]
De-Rusting Incident Resulting In Eye Injury
What happened During descaling operations using a chipping hammer, a worker got dust or rust in his eye, although he was wearing goggles and a mask at the time. The […]
UK HSE: Lubrication of circuit breakers – safety notice
The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published a Safety Notice regarding the lubrication of circuit breakers in both HV and LV equipment. The key issues covered are the […]
Shortened lanyard on MOB beacon
What happened? The practice of shortening the lanyards on MOB beacons was discovered by someone visiting a vessel. This was accordingly communicated to the Chief mate to be fixed. If […]
Unsafe personnel transfer – man overboard
What happened After completing a standard diving activity for underwater hull cleaning on a pilot boat, the diver used the quayside fender to embark from the jetty to the pilot […]
Rope under tension parted on deck
What happened A wire rope parted under tension and struck someone’s helmet. There was no injury. The incident occurred during preparation for a shore-side pull of an export cable; the […]
LTI: three fingers badly cut while handling a long brass bar
What happened? A crewman on a vessel suffered laceration on three fingers of the left hand while attempting to remove brass bar from the storage rack. The injury caused an […]
Snagged load, a sling snaps, dropped objects: persons injured
The Britannia P&I Club has shared Incident Case Study No.9 relating to how two crew members on a general cargo ship were injured when a suspended load fell and struck […]
MAIB: Crush fatality during lifting operations
The UK MAIB (Marine Accident Investigation Branch) has published Report 12/2021 into a fatal crush accident which occurred while a gantry crane was moving a hatch cover, on board the […]
UK HSE: employee scalped when hair trapped in a pillar drill
What happened The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has fined a company after an employee received scalping injuries when her hair became entangled in a pillar drill. Press release […]
LTI: person injured when hook parted during lifting operations
What happened Two crew were stood under a 3m depth skid of a cable installation plough calibrating it when part of the rigging holding the plough parted causing it to […]
UK HSE: Employee fatally injured while moving heavy equipment
The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has fined a company an employee was fatally injured while moving heavy machinery. Press release here. What happened Workers were moving a large […]
Condition of fire-fighting installation and equipment
What happened A member highlights two instances of fire-fighting equipment not being in an appropriate condition. Blocked sprinklers and nozzles It was observed that the nozzles of the fire main […]
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